1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a suitcase, more particularly to a wheeled suitcase which has two roller-assemblies and a handle assembly that are easy to assemble.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 shows a conventional wheeled suitcase according to U. S. Pat. No. 4,995,487 which includes a generally rectangular suitcase body 10 with a vertical side wall 102, a horizontal bottom wall 101 and a horizontal top wall 103, two roller assemblies 17 disposed on the suitcase body 10 and located at a corner between the bottom and side walls 101, 102 of the suitcase body 10, and a handle assembly 20 disposed on the suitcase body 10.
Referring to FIG. 2, an L-shaped support plate 12 is attached to the interior surface of the suitcase body 10 by conventional means in such a manner that the vertical plate section 122 of the support plate 12 is riveted to the vertical side wall 102 of the suitcase body 10 while the horizontal plate section 121 of the support plate 12 is riveted to the horizontal bottom wall 101 of the suitcase body 10. The support plate 12 is provided with two mounting holes 13 and two pairs of inner and outer retaining tab means 14, 15. The inner retaining tab means 14 have shaft retaining apertures 141. Each of the roller assemblies 17 includes a roller seat mechanism 171 fixed on the suitcase body 10 (see FIG. 1) and has a shaft hole unit 172, a rotating shaft 16 which extends through the shaft hole unit 172 of the roller seat mechanism 171 and the apertures 141 of the inner retaining tab means 14, and a roller 11 sleeved rotatably On the rotating shaft 16. Each of the outer retaining tab means 15 are bent upwardly so as to confine one end of the rotating shafts 16 therebetween, thereby preventing the ends of the rotating shaft 16 from axial movement.
Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3(A), the handle assembly includes two parallel vertical outer tubes 21 which have lower end portions riveted securely to the vertical plate section 122 of the support plate 12 in the suitcase body 10, and an inverted U-shaped inner tube 22 that has two vertical sections 221 mounted telescopically within the upper end portions of the outer tubes 21. Each of the upper end portions of the outer tubes 21 is pressed to form a pair of diametrically opposed retaining sheets 211 (see FIG. 3(B)). The suitcase body 10 (see FIG. 1) further includes two lock units, each of which has a tubular bushing 23 with a vertical cylindrical body 231 extending through one of the openings of the top wall 103 of the suitcase body 10 between a corresponding one of the outer tubes 21 and a corresponding one of the vertical sections 221 of the inner tubes 22 and retained on the top wall 103 of suitcase body 10 by confining the top wall 103 of the suitcase body 10 between the outward flange 233 and a retaining ring 26 which is engaged within an annular groove of the cylindrical body 231. A washer 25 is interposed between the retaining ring 26 and the top wall 103 of the suitcase body 10. The lower portions of the opposed retaining sheets 211 of the outer tubes 21 are respectively pressed into two opposed constricted recesses 232 of the corresponding vertical cylindrical body 231, thereby retaining the upper portions of the outer tubes 21 on the top wall 103 of the suitcase body 10.
In the conventional wheeled suitcase, the L-shaped support plate 12 needs to be pressed in advance in order to form the outer retaining tab means 15 which are bent upwardly so that two ends of the rotating shaft 16 can be confined between two outer retaining tab means 15. In this manner, a plurality of complicated procedures, like pressing the upper end portions of the outer tubes 21 to form the diametrically opposed retaining sheets 211 and subsequently pressing the latter into the recesses 232 of the bushing 23, are required to mount the outer tubes 21 of the handle assembly 22 and the bushing 23 to the suitcase body 10. As a result, the process for mounting the roller assemblies and the handle assembly to the conventional suitcase is time-consuming and labor consuming.